1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to an inkjet recording apparatus in which a plurality of inkjet heads are arranged in a direction in which recording paper is to travel and, more particularly, to such an inkjet recording apparatus which is capable of collecting and removing an ink mist that occurs between an under surface of each inkjet head and the recording paper.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In an inkjet recording apparatus, while recording is effected by the adhesion of ink particles discharged from a nozzle head to recording paper, during recording with such ink, ink particles may occur which are not adhered to the recording paper (recording medium). And, they become an ink mist, and the problem arises that the ink mist floating between the nozzle head and recording paper comes to contaminate not only the surface of recording paper but also the nozzle head.
For this reason, each nozzle head in an inkjet recording apparatus in the prior art is provided with an opening or port opposite to recording paper and a suction unit which communicates with the opening to suck an ink mist floating between the nozzle head and recording paper from the opening and thereby to remove the ink mist. See, for example, JP H02-179761 A.
Also, in another inkjet recording apparatus in the prior art, downstream of a nozzle head having a plurality of ink nozzles arranged therein, an air suction port and an air blast port are provided opposite to each other and with recording paper whereby an ink mist occurring between the nozzle head and the recording paper is sucked through the air suction port at a downstream side of the nozzle head and hot air is discharged from the air blast port to dry a recorded image on the recording paper. See, for example, JP S62-111,749 A.
Since the nozzle head is provided with the suction port in the former of the prior art and the suction and blast ports in the latter of the prior art, an air piping which connects to such a port or ports must be provided in the nozzle head and the problem arises that the internal mechanism within the nozzle head which is of a limited space becomes intricate.
Moreover, in both the arrangements of the prior art, the air suction port for sucking an ink mist is open facing the recording paper to suck air in a space between the nozzle head and the recording paper in a direction perpendicular to the recording paper and at the same time to cause air from the environment to flow from around the nozzle head into the space between the nozzle head and the recording paper. As a result, the air flow by such an air suction port becomes turbulent so that it becomes impossible to smoothly such air in a gap between the nozzle head and the recording paper and to efficiently remove and suck an ink mist there.